About three years ago, I was walking along Murphy Street in Wellington one day and stopped across the road from the US Embassy, pulled my camera out, and started taking a few photographs of their “paranoia castle” (no other embassy in Wellington goes so over-the-top in fortress mentality, although the Pommy and Oz high commissions do tend in that direction a bit). There were three US Marines guarding the main entrance gate, a corporal and two ordinary marines. I could see they were getting rather agitated about me taking photographs. The corporal walked across Murphy Street and asked me what I was doing. I told him I was standing on a public footpath on a public street taking photographs. He asked me to stop taking photographs of the US embassy. I told him we are free to take photographs of whatever we like in New Zealand. With that he turned and walked back across the road and disappeared into the gatehouse. I carried on walking down Murphy Street and into Mulgrave Street. Not long before reaching Thorndon Quay, a grey Ford sedan drove down the road, then slowed down and crawled past me. I could see some burley “suits” in the car which I presumed were police diplomatic protection squad members. I raised the camera and took a couple of photographs of them, whereapon they turned their heads away and the car floored it around the corner into Thorndon Quay and disappeared. I guess I must have upset both the US Marines AND the diplomatic protection squad, eh?
